Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ)

The PAQ is a structured job analysis questionnaire that aids the user in conducting a quantified analysis of a given job. To complete a job analysis using the PAQ, the user reviews background information, observes the job, and conducts thorough interviews with job incumbents to determine job content then rates the extent to which each item on a standard list of PAQ job elements applies to that particular job. There are six types of rating scales used in the PAQ: Extent of Use; Importance to This Job; Amount of Time; Possibility of Occurrence; Applicability; and Item-Specific scales. The PAQ was developed in the 1960s by Ernest McCormick (as well as his colleagues at Purdue University). It was designed around the well-known behaviorist formula S-O-R, where the organism (O) receives a stimulus (S) and makes a response (R). But the PAQ also notes that the environment and social setting play a role in job performance. Unlike JEM (Job Evaluation Method), the PAQ was designed so that the same elements apply to all jobs. Again, the term element has a different meaning across the two techniques.

Before 2004, the PAQ consisted of 194 items or elements. Of these, the first 187 concern either a human attribute (for example, color perception) or an aspect of the job requiring accommodation by the human (for example, the job makes use of written information, the jobholder experiences vibration). The last seven items (188–194) concern compensation (pay) for the job and are not considered here. The items are collected into six major divisions, which are listed in Table 3.4. Information input, for example, concerns what type of information the jobholder gets, and where and how he or she gets it. The major divisions are further divided into subdivisions called sections and subsections. Each section or subsection is composed of related items. Sample subdivisions and items are also listed in Table 3.4. In 2004, the PAQ was supplemented by job analysis questions used in U.S. Social Security disability determinations; new job analysis questions added by the August 23, 2004, amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA; the first major change since 1949); analysis questions long-believed to be required, such as “ability to sit/stand/shuffle”; education requirements; and certain stress-related questions. Exactly 300 items are now used.

The job analyst considers each item relative to the job under consideration and decides whether the item applies to the job. If the item does apply, then the analyst rates the job on the item. Although the PAQ is named for the term position, it is typically used to analyze the job as we have defined it. That is, the PAQ is usually used to analyze a group of related positions that are similar enough to be called a job and given a single title. The analyst then records for each item his or her judgment about the item with regard to a rating scale developed for the PAQ. There are six different rating scales used in the PAQ. Only one rating scale applies to any given item. Each rating scale is illustrated in Table 3.5 along with sample items.

The PAQ manual notes that specially trained analysts, managers, and even incumbents can complete the PAQ. However, in most cases specially trained analysts should be used. We recommend that incumbents should not, if possible, complete the PAQ because it requires a high level of reading comprehension and many rather abstract judgments. Also, many of the PAQ scales will not

Table 3.4         Structure of the Position Analysis Questionnaire